Competitive kite flying (as in The Kite Runner) had disappeared before my time.

Now days, all sorts of cutthroat games like these have gone away. Play has been become all team work and cooperation. It's all adult supervised, and the idea of playing a game with bit of glass and the object of smashing, chipping, breaking the others guys stuff is—well--unheard of.

But there are still marbles about.

I have about 60 marbles.. mostly glass with a few (4 or 5) shooters--including 1 aggie. (but no steelies)

I find my marbles, 1 at a time, in the most unlikely places. My most recent one, in the gutter of my side street.

Don't let the word “side street” fool you. It's 4 lanes of traffic, plus 2 lanes of parking. In one direction it's a feeder road to an on ramp of I-495 (LIE) in the other direction, it's part of a bus route--to La Guardia Airport.

There aren't any houses (or stores) across the street from me,--just the open terraces of a large multi story parking garage. And “my side”? A long (about double the length of an average) block—the side of a an over sized parcel that has 6 Hi-rise buildings, (each with 120 + apartments, ) a pool, two play areas, and parking garages. (underground)

Still a marble washed out from somewhere, and got carried along till the rain ended and then it stuck in the sand and mud wash out. Just the top quarter remained above the mud, glinting in the sun.

It is amazing, and yet not so, that I can find about 1 marble a year in NYC.But, then, I look for marbles.. I seek them out and I find them.

They reminding me, YOU'LL ALWAYS FIND WHAT YOU LOOK FOR.

Some people look for trouble (and they too find it everywhere) some look for worst in people, and they find that too.

I look for beauty. Marbles are just little bits of beauty.. but I find them.. and each time I am reminded to pay attention of my focus—I know, what every I look for, I will find.